


Tether

by secretagentfan



Category: Tales of Xillia
Genre: Direct-Tethering...Sort of, Getting Together, M/M, Porn with Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:14:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25539370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/secretagentfan/pseuds/secretagentfan
Summary: Gifts from Muzét rarely bode well for Jude, but this one might be the exception. Ludger, after all, isn't a spirit. What could be the harm in testing out a tethering device with him?Mana is shared, links are made, and Jude learns several new things about Ludger— and even more about himself.
Relationships: Jude Mathis/Ludger Will Kresnik
Comments: 9
Kudos: 28





	Tether

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so this is very definitely based off of that one skit in Sharilton, where if you ask Rowen about popular souvenirs he mentions Sharilton having spirit-themed things, some of which are "unseemly" in nature. 
> 
> What on earth could those be?
> 
> Well...

The brass clip was a gentle weight against Jude’s temple, the metal cool against his skin. It was hard to believe it held much of anything inside, but Jude had certainly seen weirder serve as a conduit. It’s possible the whole thing was fake— that would almost be preferable. The “tether simulator” could just be a little brass box, incapable of anything. It would make this whole situation a lot funnier, and a lot less embarrassing.

Ludger sat cross-legged across from him on the bed, grinning cheekily. His matching brass clip was brushing the black section of his bangs. The tether box sat innocently between them, a small button at the center.

“We really don’t have to do this, Ludger,” Jude mumbled. “I know I said I was curious but…the box was a gift from Muzét, and I don’t know what’s going to happen. Testing out something like this just to have it tested could be…odd.”

Ludger tilted his head, and then shrugged. He looked completely unfazed, of course. He had found the tether box in a dark corner of Jude’s office at Helioborg and his reaction, rather than judgement, had been a curious: _Well_ , _have you used it?_

Jude had turned scarlet, and sputtered that the box couldn't be used alone, hoping that Ludger would catch on. Instead, he had been his usual helpful self and offered his services.

Jude still didn’t know why he accepted. Something about Ludger just made everything easier. Made him willing to explore parts of himself he hadn’t before. That sounded wrong. Jude was going to die here.

“We don’t have to,” Ludger said. “But I am a little curious. I don’t have a mana lobe, after all.”

“Well,” Jude replied, now a little intrigued, “I do wonder how it will work.”

Ludger smiled at him, and Jude, slowly, felt himself smiling back.

“Feel free to turn it off if it feels strange at all, okay?”

Ludger nodded, and Jude pushed the button on the box. It came to life, making a small whirring sound. The clip on Jude’s temple heated up slowly. He looked at Ludger, who was making a face, tapping at his own clip.

“It’s warming up, I think,” Jude explained. “Do you feel anything?”

Ludger shook his head. Jude almost wished he kept the instructions.

“How does direct tethering usually work?” Ludger asked.

“Well, you usually transfer mana through the link directly for the spirit to use.”

Ludger frowned, “Well, I can’t do that. So…why don’t you try giving me some?”

Oh. Jude blinked. “Sure.”

He shut his eyes, feeling for the link between them. He was surprised by how quickly he could bring it up. In the heat of battle, reaching for a link was easy, with adrenaline fueling the bond. Like this, just relaxing at Ludger’s apartment in Trigleph, it shouldn’t have been so easy to find. Maybe the tether device was doing something.

Hesitantly, Jude sent a little mana through the link, the same way he remembered sending to Muzét. He heard Ludger breathe in.

“You okay?”

Ludger opened his eyes. He nodded, seeming completely unaffected. Jude was almost disappointed.

“Well…I’ll give you a little more then, okay?”

Ludger shifted on the bed, sighing. Jude sighed with him. Adrenaline pumped through his veins to compensate for the loss of mana. Draining, but good.

“Jude, you okay?” Ludger asked this time. Jude nodded.

“Yeah, it feels nice. What about you?”

“Yeah.”

They sat together, Jude slowly sending more mana through their bond.

He became aware of a different feeling, the quiet sensation of Ludger’s thoughts through the tether. He couldn’t make out specifics, or even understand the full emotion behind them, but he could feel the process, the skeleton. If Ludger’s emotions were a forest, Jude was able to feel the breeze through the trees.

It felt sweet and exhausting at the same time, giving mana. Like Jude had just come up for air after diving deep underwater. He could float for a few minutes, giving only a little, until he could dive in again.

He took a few steadying breaths, gathering more mana and indulging in the sensation of Ludger’s emotional presence slowly solidifying through their link, fed directly from Jude’s brain, heart, chest.

Jude inhaled and exhaled again. Ludger did the same, next to him. He seemed totally relaxed, leaning back on his forearms, eyes shut.

Jude whispered, “I thought this would feel strange, but it doesn’t. It just—it feels—wow, I don’t know how to express this, actually.”

“It feels like you,” Ludger said. His voice was low and sounded fuller somehow.

Jude felt his cheeks heat. “Yeah, exactly.”

Ludger smiled.

A light feeling spread in his chest as he smiled back, shyly. For a moment, he thought the feeling was his own, but then he realized that it was Ludger’s. A bursting, teasing feeling, echoing back from somewhere inside Ludger in exchange for all Jude was sending. The reflection of a laugh; Ludger was clearly amused by his focus.

Jude figured he should have been a little offended, but intellectual curiosity won out, as it always did. He _was_ into this. Who wouldn’t be? There was no point in burying that. The fascinating thing was that he could _feel_ how Ludger felt about it while he was giving him mana.

“I can feel you laughing at me,” he said. “Can you—"

“Yeah,” Ludger said, the same whisps of joy and amusement tickling Jude’s chest. “I can feel you too. Aren’t you getting tired Jude? You’re giving me a lot.”

Jude shook his head. “This is…really incredible though. To think that I can feel _how_ you’re feeling, when sending like this. There have to be—”

Jude’s head felt a little heavy, he slowed down on the transfer. It felt like casting, the weight of mana slowly evaporating from his body in a tenuous, liquid, thread. Slow down.

He realized he had stopped talking, and quickly picked up again. His face felt warm, comfortable.

“Think about how much closer people could be if they could tether like this. This sort of connection— if people could truly feel someone else’s perspective, even in a limited way like this— it could help a lot. Companies could learn how to see things from the perspective of the people.”

Grant writers could see the point of Jude’s research again. The possibilities were endless—

A shy sort of reluctance echoed back through their link, cooling the warmth in Jude’s chest. His eyebrows drew together as he looked questioningly at Ludger. “You disagree?”

“Ah,” Ludger said. A foreign emotion rolled in Jude’s stomach, definitely Ludger’s. It was faint, and Jude was curious. As he fed more mana through their tether, the emotion clarified. Shame, embarrassment—aha, something else. What was it?

Ludger shifted forward, breath catching. His hand caught in his hair.

“Hey, slow down,” he breathed, almost looking pained. “That’s—a lot, Jude.”

Jude blushed to his ears. What was he doing? This felt…intrusive. “I’m sorry,” he said, stupidly.

Ludger seemed to misunderstand, looking at Jude with his clear green eyes. 

“It’s fine. Just intimate,” Ludger admitted. “Wouldn’t recommend this to—Spirius.”

Ludger’s face was red. Jude felt something desperate in him surge, and hoped Ludger didn’t feel it too intensely through their tether. He really, really, had to slow this down.

“Right, I guess this isn’t something you could just ask enemies to do. Do you want to stop? Sorry this was a weird—”

Ludger’s hand caught Jude’s before it could shut off the device.

“No, it’s okay. You like it, don’t you?”

Jude’s breath caught. The link between them seemed to open up another level with the physical contact, and suddenly Jude could _feel,_ as physically as Ludger’s hand in his, that Ludger was really _enjoying_ this. Enjoying _Jude_ doing this.

Oh. Jude thought, eyes meeting Ludger’s as he dropped his hand like a coiling snake. _Oh._

The more intense link faded, but only slightly; something had changed. A new, aggressive emotion surged up in Jude, entirely unexpected, and he watched with horror as that slipped into Ludger alongside his mana.

Ludger gasped, a rasping, startled sound as his body arched a bit. Lust hit Jude like a truck, and he realized with horror, that he was very, very hard.

“ _I am so sorry_ ,” he burst, heart beating quickly, mercilessly. This is why the device hadn’t caught on, people weren’t meant to feed into each other like this. Not without intention.

“N-no” Ludger said. “I didn’t—I…”

Jude moved to push the button and turn off the connection before he could embarrass himself further. Something warm and firm and powerful surged through his entire body before he got the chance. His knees went weak, voice catching on a startled moan.

“Ah…I guess I can send too.” Ludger mumbled. He was staring, looking more than a little flushed and horrified, but his pupils were very, very dark.

It wasn’t mana. It was emotion. Desire, curiosity, interest, fear– Ludger’s heart was exposed in a torrent, and Jude felt his own feelings scream to match his in a fervent, protective wave of mana. It was heady and overwhelming; Jude lost his balance and sank back down to the bed.

They both stared at the floor as the intensity of the other’s feelings overwhelmed them. Mana flowed steadily from Jude into Ludger without argument, Ludger’s hidden feelings echoing back longing, lust, affection.

“Kiss me,” Jude gasped, finally, and Ludger practically leapt forward, crawling across the bed, lips meeting Jude’s in a fever. Their link deepened again, sharp, overwhelming. They groaned into each other, Jude’s hands flying to Ludger’s cheeks, Ludger’s arms tightening around his waist, pulling him closer and clutching at his hips, shirt, anything, anywhere.

Love. Ludger loved him. The feeling was clear, stark against the echo of their collective bright, gooey half-thoughts and the feeling of Ludger’s lips sliding against his. A foundation. Jude pressed himself into this foundation, and into Ludger’s chest, his hands sliding up the nape of his neck to run through short hair, tilting his head as Ludger kissed him deeper, harder.

Jude didn’t know how to kiss like Ludger. Didn’t know how Ludger was so good at this, so capable and quick; pressing him into the mattress, but still cradling his head in a tender, protective way that made his heart ache. Jude didn’t know how to kiss at all, really, but he did know how to send mana, and he pumped as much as he could into Ludger, who echoed back _need_ , embarrassing amounts of need, deep in his heart. Ludger’s voice caught on something sweet-sounding between a gasp and a moan, and Jude felt it flutter around in his chest. He felt faint, dizzy, and flushed, body and mind giving entirely too much at once, but that didn’t matter. He didn’t want to stop, he could give more— he spread his legs, wrapping them around Ludger’s back, pulling him closer, slotting their hips and lips together with toe-curling ferocity. Ludger’s whole body shuddered against him, and Jude felt unspeakably powerful, for a moment.

Jude was frantically unbuttoning his pants when the device went silent, leaving Jude’s body abruptly cold and familiar with his own feelings. Ludger had broken the kiss, breathing hard. The plug to the tethering device was in his hand. Jude sank back on the bed, chest heaving. Ludger was on top of him, his face close enough that Jude could feel the heat coming off of it.

The only sound in the room was their shallow breathing, it seemed to echo in the new silence.

Jude didn’t know what to say. He made himself look at Ludger, helpless, and realized that was where he should have been looking in the first place.

Ludger looked fucked. Flushed and overwhelmed. He had bitten his lip, and it was swelling beautifully. Jude wanted to kiss him again, be kissed, be touched physically, not just mentally. No, he wanted more than that, he wanted Ludger to _feel_ how good it felt to kiss him, wanted to feel how it felt for Ludger. He wanted to know as much as he could. Every greedy thought, every fantasy.

Jude wanted to hit the button again. He’d drain himself dry if it meant more of whatever that was. He wished they hadn’t sold their stash of orange gels in a haphazard effort to upgrade Elize’s staff. He could do this for hours, _days,_ mana allowing.

“You…okay Jude?” Ludger asked, and Jude blinked up at him. How could he not be? Ludger loved him. Ludger _loved_ him and he got to feel it, the certainty of it, the patient, thoroughness of it; four walls and a roof, built stone by stone, over time. Jude’s love was different, he knew this: a quiet ember of a thing that he’d kept close to his chest, secret but burning hot enough he felt it in his fingertips. He hoped it was enough for Ludger, no, he hoped he _liked_ it. Jude did.

“I feel great,” Jude said, well aware of the stupid smile on his face. “You…?”

“Great,” he echoed. “Just…surprised.”

Ludger’s shy smile was beautiful. Jude found his hand, holding it to his chest. It was warm. He wanted to kiss his fingers. Suck on them. He blushed at the thought, relieved they weren’t linked anymore.

Rather than doubts, Jude had _questions_ on the edge of his tongue. How long had Ludger felt this way? Had it happened one day without Ludger realizing like it had with Jude? Did it feel easy, natural, incredible? He wanted to ask, he had so much to ask, but Ludger had started to look worried, eyes not meeting Jude’s, and that trumped Jude’s need to examine.

“Really, are you okay, Ludger?” Jude asked. Hesitantly, he ran a hand through Ludger’s hair, pushing the dark fringe out of his face. He was hard, obviously so, but still trying to be polite and keep from grinding against Jude, even though Jude was still very much wrapped around him. “You unplugged it.”

Ludger took a very, very deep breath, as Jude ran a thumb over the line of his jaw. He licked his lips, and Jude wanted to kiss him again, but before he could, Ludger buried his face in his neck.

“Mana is…something,” he mumbled. Jude felt the vibration of his voice against his throat. He shifted, politely struggling to find a comfortable resting position for his legs that wasn’t so firmly locked against Ludger.

“Huh?”

“You gave me way too much. I don’t know what to do with all this energy,” Ludger whispered, hesitantly peeking up from where he had hidden in Jude’s throat. He bumped his forehead against Jude’s. Jude couldn’t take his eyes off his lips.

“I mean, if you’re, uh, taking suggestions…”

He ran a hand down Ludger’s back, slowly untucking his shirt. The suggestion was obvious. He hesitated at the buckle of his suspenders. “Unless you’re uncomfortable and would rather talk first that’s okay too—I just thought, well, felt—”

Ludger cupped his face, and warm, sweet lips were on his again, pleasing, molten, satisfying. Jude melted into the touch, kissing back, relishing the quiet moans he was managing to draw out of Ludger. Talking could come later, this was the most important thing in the entire world right now.

Ludger’s hands slid under Jude’s black t-shirt, and Jude stopped his now-frantic unbuckling to break their kiss and help Ludger raise it over his head. His eyes scanned down Jude’s body appreciatively, and Jude felt himself swallow, a little self-conscious. Ludger pecked his lips, as if hearing Jude’s nerves, massaging the rise and fall of his chest down to the soft-firm muscles in his abdomen, with sword-calloused hands. Jude’s hips raised at his touch, eyes shutting. He tilted his head to whisper in Ludger’s ear as he nipped hungrily at his collarbone.

“You can move a little faster than this, if you want,” he requested, surprised by how deep his voice sounded, how much rougher it had gotten just by Ludger’s touch.

Ludger’s head thumped onto the pillow next to him, and his hands held Jude’s hips in place where they had been trying to grind up. Jude blinked.

“I’m trying to hold back here, Jude,” he mumbled, and, oh, his voice sounded wrecked still. Had the mana done that? Part of Jude hoped it was just Jude himself.

“Don’t,” Jude replied, simply. He felt Ludger take a deep breath in, as Jude freed him from his suspenders and pulled his pants down. “I…want this, you know. You can…take whatever you want from me— however you want it.”

Ludger’s thumbs massaged Jude’s hipbones, where his pants had fallen at some point in their earlier kiss. He seemed to be thinking.

“What is it?” Jude shifted, impatient.

“You…tether wrong,” Ludger said, flatly.

His face was inches from his own, cheeks flushed and perfect. Jude lost the ability to breathe, as a confused _huh?_ sound escaped through his lips.

“It’s supposed to be an exchange, right? You talked about sharing before, but you…just gave me all this mana, and now you’re trying to get me to take more from you.”

Ludger was focused, eyes shining with a determination Jude had only seen while he was playing poker, or was facing off against a particularly difficult enemy, hammer in hand, the portrait of steadfast, unexpected confidence.

“Let me _give_ to you, Jude,” he said. “You don’t have to be the only one offering something.”

Jude gulped, completely caught off-guard by the molten emotions swirling in his chest. Not trusting himself to speak, he nodded, and felt Ludger’s hands slowly draw his boxers down his legs and toss them onto the floor. Ludger’s shirt and underwear followed behind.

The room was quiet as they untangled in order for Ludger to pull some lube out of his bedside table and started warming it in his hands. Naked, exposed, Jude watched him.

Slowly, Ludger’s eyes met his, and he smiled, all warm affection. Jude’s heart leapt. He was in love, helplessly, _hopelessly_ , and he was drowning in the feeling. He grinned back, tugging Ludger on top of him, laughing breathlessly as the bed squeaked underneath them, desperate for anything he had to give.

Ludger waved a lube-coated hand in front of Jude, asking for permission. Jude fought back the urge to laugh slightly hysterically at the image and nodded, as Ludger’s fingers massaged down his waist to cup his ass, teasing. Jude took a deep breath, and that was the last solid breath he got to take, because Ludger’s other hand had made its way to his dick, and was moving in a slow stable rhythm that made him groan, curling into Ludger’s shoulder.

When Ludger’s fingers entered him he hardly felt them, too focused on the other sensations, but after a few clever thrusts, and an embarrassing, unexpected moan, they were all he felt. Ludger’s hand released Jude’s dick, at his request, resting on the back of Jude’s neck instead. Jude’s breath caught, his hands tracing the firm, lean muscles of Ludger’s back. He kissed the side of Ludger’s head, because it was close enough, felt nice, and he wanted to. Ludger smiled, nuzzling Jude’s hand distractedly, as he added a third finger. His back was trembling, a bit, clearly still holding back.

Jude exhaled, wrapping his legs tighter around his waist, pulling him in so they could rub against each other. Pre-cum gathered at the tip of his dick as they grinded together, and Jude had to look at the ceiling a moment to keep from getting swept up in this, grinding with Ludger until they both came all over each other. Another time, maybe?

“Okay, that’s—yeah,” he articulated, as Ludger’s fingers gave a particularly hard thrust, and was rewarded by Ludger’s breathy laugh in his shoulder. It was almost as good as feeling it in his chest.

“Yeah?” Ludger offered, eyebrows raised teasingly, and Jude drew his face back to his own, kissing him hard and slow. He was getting better at this, he figured. When Ludger pulled away, his eyes were unfocused. Jude spread his legs a little more, and Ludger caught one of them, slowly raising it over his shoulder, as he lined up and slid inside him with a single, smooth thrust.

It was so helplessly, incredibly, _warm_. Jude shut his eyes, as Ludger kissed him, praying to every god he had ever heard of that he wouldn’t cum instantly like this, but Ludger didn’t seem too keen on holding him back. He was liquid and methodical, taking Jude apart with each push and pull of his hips like he did such things all the time. It was all Jude could do to hold on for dear life, accept and adore, as his hands tangled in Ludger’s hair.

Ludger slowed down, and Jude opened his eyes to realize he was being watched. Careful green eyes were glued to his face. There was a gentle desperation reflected in them, like trying to trap a hurricane in a bottle, all quiet, hungry focus, and Jude realized Ludger was holding back just as much, trying not to give in to soon, trying to last as long as he could. Giving. Jude felt the ember in his chest ignite, expand, and burst into something he no longer had any control over. His breath caught on a moan, as Ludger found his leaking dick, rubbing it in tune with his thrusts, making Jude shudder.

Jude’s head fell back to the pillow, breath leaving him as Ludger kissed him with single-minded concentration, passionately rough, hips losing their rhythm in favor of needy, deep thrusts. Jude let go, squeezing him as tightly as he could, as Ludger milked him through his orgasm, flooding him with warmth.

Somewhere in the blaze of hormones and orgasm, Jude found Ludger’s hand and grabbed for it, fingers locking tight around his own. When he slowly opened his eyes, coming down, his chest rising and falling in uneven, relaxed breaths, Ludger’s hand squeezed his own.

“That was…” Jude started, and then shook his head. He met Ludger’s eyes, relished in the calm, satiated look there, and kissed him, barely brushing their lips together.

“I love you,” Jude admitted. It was the only thing left in his head, and it felt effortless.

He felt Ludger’s heart pick up, speedy, incriminating. Blinking, Jude whispered it again, in his ear. Ludger turned away, face hot. A smile spread across Jude’s face.

“Did you not know…?”

Ludger cleared his throat. Jude laughed, incredulous.

“How?” Jude asked. “We were just connected. Twice.”

“It’s different to hear it.”

“I suppose so,” Jude frowned, uncertain if he really believed that. He had felt it so strongly before, words couldn’t possibly feel different than—

“I love you too,” Ludger mumbled, cheek in the pillow beside Jude. His voice was warm, exhausted.

 _Oh._ Jude thought, all thoughts leaving his head, replaced with a bursting joyful thrill.

He’d have to look into this further.


End file.
